Minnesota man who killed teens in break-in charged with murder

[NIUhuskies]

wow, this sounds pretty messed up... Cant tell if his guy is nuts or if these kids were on drugs

By NBC News staff and wire services

A 64-year-old Minnesota man was charged Monday with murder for killing two teenagers who he said broke into his Little Falls home, shooting them in the head, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported.

AP file

Byron David Smith was arrested after he told police he shot and killed two teenagers who he said were breaking into his home on Thanksgiving Day.

"If you're trying to shoot somebody and they laugh at you, you go again," Byron David Smith of Little Falls told investigators, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday.

Smith was charged with two counts of second-degree murder in the deaths of Haile Kifer, 18, and her cousin, Nicholas Brady, 17, both of Little Falls. The teens were shot on Thanksgiving Day, but their deaths weren't reported until Friday.
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Brady has also used the name Schaeffel, which is his mother’s maiden name, at times for family reasons, according to the sheriff's office.

In the criminal complaint, Smith said he was in the basement of his remote home about 10 miles southwest of Little Falls when he heard a window breaking upstairs, followed by footsteps that eventually approached the basement stairwell. Fearful after several break-ins, according to the complaint, Smith said he fired when Brady came into view from the waist down.

After the teen fell down the stairs, Smith said he shot him in the face as he lay on the floor.

"I want him dead," the complaint quoted Smith telling an investigator.

Smith said he dragged Brady's body into his basement workshop, then sat back down on his chair, and after a few minutes Kifer began coming down the stairs. He said he shot her as soon as her hips appeared, and she fell down the steps.

Smith said he tried to shoot her again with his Mini 14 rifle, but that the gun jammed and Kifer laughed at him.

"Smith stated that it was not a very long laugh because she was already hurting," according to the complaint.

Smith said he then shot Kifer in the chest several times with a .22-caliber revolver, dragged her next to Brady, and with her still gasping for air, fired a shot under her chin "up into the cranium."

"Smith described it as 'a good clean finishing shot,'" according to the compliant, but also that he acknowledged he had fired "more shots than (he) needed to."

The following day he asked a neighbor to recommend a good lawyer, according to the complaint. He later asked his neighbor to call the police.

A prosecutor called Smith's reaction "appalling."

"Mr. Smith intentionally killed two teenagers in his home in a matter that goes well beyond self-defense," Morrison County Attorney Brian Middendorf said after Smith appeared at Morrison County District Court on Monday morning. Bail was set at $2 million.

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Minnesota law allows a homeowner to use deadly force on an intruder if a reasonable person would fear they're in danger of harm. Smith told investigators he was afraid the intruders might have a weapon.

Smith's actions "sound like an execution" rather than legitimate self-defense, said David Pecchia, executive director of the Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association. Pecchia said his statements to investigators suggest he had eliminated any threat to his safety by wounding the cousins.

Smith's brother, Bruce Smith, told the Star Tribune of Minneapolis that the incident was the eighth burglary at Byron Smith's home in recent years.

The only report the Morrison County sheriff's office has for a break-in at the home was for one on Oct. 27. It shows Byron Smith reported losing cash and gold coins worth $9,200, plus two guns worth $200 each, photo equipment worth more than $3,000 and a ring worth $300.

Little Falls is about 100 miles northwest of Minneapolis.

Brady's sister, Crystal Schaeffel, told the Star Tribune that Kifer had broken into her home before. Little Falls police records show Crystal Schaeffel reported a theft Aug. 28, but the department said the report was not public because that investigation was continuing and because it named juveniles.

Tessa Ruth, an aunt of Brady, attended Smith's hearing. She told the Star Tribune she wished the man had fired a warning shot or alerted the police instead of shooting the teens.

"It wasn't right for them to be there and, yes, he had a right to defend himself. But to execute them like that..."

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012...th-murder?lite

[Omaha]

Originally Posted by Rain Man

If I'm on the jury, I recognize the fear that she'll get sent to the hospital, heal up at taxpayer expense (that last part was just an insult), and then come back with a gun to get revenge on the death of her pimp or whatever (that was also an insult - I don't like criminals). She's a repeat criminal who was an imminent and long-term threat to his safety.

I understand your logic and suspect that you're legally right. However, I think the jury does the right thing on this one as long as the defense attorneys cut this guy's hair and put a suit on him.

If he really believed that was going to happen, that still wouldn't put him in imminent danger.

I really don't think that was his thought process, though. I believe he decided to take matter into his own hands and make sure these teens never broke into his house ever again.

[Omaha]

Originally Posted by Radar Chief

He's not saying the guy is innocent of murder, he's arguing the difference between man slaughter and murder 1.
Personally I disagree, moving the incapacitated intruders around to “finish them off” seems a pretty clear indication of premeditation to me. I'm just not going to get worked up over it and will wait to see what the jury decides.

I guess I missed where he mentioned anything about manslaughter. I still think his argument against murder is ridiculous. There are way better arguments that one could make, but his are silly and ill-conceived.

I agree with your take on it.

[ForeverChiefs58]

Originally Posted by Omaha

If he really believed that was going to happen, that still wouldn't put him in imminent danger.

I really don't think that was his thought process, though. I believe he decided to take matter into his own hands and make sure these teens never broke into his house ever again.

Minnesota law allows deadly force to prevent a felony, so that defense might work

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by Omaha

If he really believed that was going to happen, that still wouldn't put him in imminent danger.

I really don't think that was his thought process, though. I believe he decided to take matter into his own hands and make sure these teens never broke into his house ever again.

I don't know if that was his thought process or not, but as a jury member looking at the defense table, that would be my assumption until proven otherwise. Of course, this guy seems to have watched too many Charles Bronson movies so he'll likely kill that defense himself.

I would rather set ten guilty criminal-killing homeowners free than imprison one innocent one. I just wish this guy was less crazy.

[Just Passin' By]

If this guy's attorney has even half a brain, the defendant won't take the stand. From what's been published, the prosecution would destroy this guy on cross.

[Omaha]

Originally Posted by ForeverChiefs58

[/B]




Minnesota law allows deadly force to prevent a felony, so that defense might work

It would work for the first shot. Not the finisher.

[Xanathol]

These 'kids' were trash - thieves - the old man should be given a medal.

[Rain Man]

Originally Posted by Just Passin' By

If this guy's attorney has even half a brain, the defendant won't take the stand. From what's been published, the prosecution would destroy this guy on cross.

Yeah. The defendant would be better off going to court in a straight jacket on one of those Hannibal Lector dollies with the mask over his mouth than testifying.

[DTLB58]

Originally Posted by Xanathol

These 'kids' were trash - thieves - the old man should be given a medal.

So since they were burglar's they deserved to be killed? He could have fired a warning shot and that might have scared them enough....or if they would have served some time....There are thousands of cases where people have turned their lives around after being idiots young in life.

I'm not opposed to protecting ones property or own life, but to the extent he took it, I think he went a little overboard.

[displacedinMN]

LITTLE FALLS, Minn. - The jury in the Byron Smith murder trial heard a graphic audiotape Tuesday morning that captured the fatal shootings of two teenage cousins.

The families of 17-year-old Nick Brady and 18-year-old Haile Kifer sobbed as the courtroom heard the events of the fatal day in November of 2012 unfold. KARE 11's Jana Shortal is in the courtroom for Smith's trial and provided this account of what she heard on the tape.

The sound of breaking glass was followed by footsteps coming down a set of stairs, an intruder that investigators say was Brady. Two gunshots are fired, followed by groans from Brady who has been seriously wounded. One more shot is fired after which Smith is heard saying, "You're dead."

The tape continues with sounds of heavy breathing and what appears to be someone dragging something. After approximately 11 minutes there is the sound of Smith reloading his weapon. A female voice belonging to Kifer softly calls "Nick?" down the stairs. A shot is fired followed immediately by the sound of someone falling down the stairs. Smith is heard saying "Sorry about that," then Kifer screams. She says "Oh my God, I'm sorry," then three or four more gunshots are fired. Smith mutters, "B****," and then the tape captures the sounds of what is most likely the defendant dragging Kifer's body. Then there is a final gunshot.

Smith's defense team maintains that the shooting of the two teens was self-defense, and that he was terrified after a series of break-ins at his home. Prosecutors say he went too far, firing repeatedly after the threat to his safety had been removed.

[Rain Man]

He probably should have destroyed that recording.

[Aries Walker]

Originally Posted by DTLB58

I'm not opposed to protecting ones property or own life, but to the extent he took it, I think he went a little overboard.

Yeah, a teensy, weensy bit. Just a smidge.

[Sully]

That makes my stomach turn. Sad all around.

[Tombstone RJ]

Originally Posted by Omaha

I guess I missed where he mentioned anything about manslaughter. I still think his argument against murder is ridiculous. There are way better arguments that one could make, but his are silly and ill-conceived.

I agree with your take on it.

go back and read my posts again. I said I thought it would get pleaded down to manslaughter in one post and I never said I didn't agree with that. Then post 359 backs this up.

I've said he should go to jail, I also said this whole case is very sad and unfortunate. I also clearly said from the beginning I don't think he should be CHARGED with premeditated murder.

I think you are the one trolling. Anyone who can read knows what I've been saying.

[displacedinMN]

LITTLE FALLS, Minn. -- The two Minnesota cousins killed by a man who claimed he was defending himself after they broke into his home were each shot multiple times, a medical examiner testified Thursday, and while the initial gunshots caused serious injury, they did not immediately kill the teens.

Byron Smith, of Little Falls, is charged with first-degree premeditated murder in the deaths of 18-year-old Haile Kifer and 17-year-old Nick Brady on Thanksgiving Day 2012. Smith, 65, claims he was defending himself and feared for his life after several break-ins at his home. But prosecutors say he sat in his basement with guns, waiting for the teens to enter his house, then went too far when he continued to shoot them after they were no longer a threat.

The killings stunned Little Falls, a central Minnesota community of 8,000, and stirred debate about how far people can go to defend their homes. Under Minnesota law, a person may use deadly force to prevent a felony from taking place in one's home or dwelling.

Jurors viewed autopsy photos Thursday that showed the teens' injuries, as Smith sat still and stared at the photos projected on a screen. Dr. Kelly Mills, with the Ramsey County medical examiner's office, testified that Brady was shot three times, and Kifer had six gunshot wounds.

Mills said the final shot to Brady, which went through his right hand and into his right temple, was the "most immediately fatal." She described it as a close-range shot, fired from between 6 inches and 3 feet away, that went through his skull and into his brain.

Brady was also shot in the abdomen and in the back of his left shoulder as he descended the stairs into Smith's basement. Mills testified these first two gunshots caused serious internal injuries that would have been fatal had enough time passed but would not have been incapacitating.

Mills testified that Kifer had six gunshot wounds, including two to the head at close range. She said the shot that killed Kifer, the fifth fired by Smith, was a close-range shot behind her left ear, striking her brainstem.

"This is a fatal shot," Mills testified. According to the criminal complaint, Smith fired another shot after that, under Kifer's chin, which he called a "finishing shot."

On cross-examination, defense attorney Steven Meshbesher pointed out that before the fatal shots, both Kifer and Brady would have been able to move and could have been perceived as threats. He said Brady could have grabbed a weapon if he had one. Both teens were unarmed.

Mills testified that Brady testified negative for alcohol and drugs. But Kifer had an ingredient from cough medicine in her system at a level that would have made her intoxicated. Mills said the drug, dextromethorphan, can cause hallucinations, disassociation and an out-of-body experience.

Kifer's toxicology tests also showed the presence of a marijuana metabolite that Mills says had no hallucinogenic effects, Mills testified.

Prosecutors rested their case Thursday, and defense attorneys called their first witness, Morrison County Sheriff's Deputy Jamie Luberts. Meshbesher questioned Luberts about recent burglaries on Smith's properties.

Meshbesher said his client wrote a memo to sheriff's officials on Oct. 29, asking authorities to investigate recent burglaries at his house and at an adjacent property he owns. Meshbesher raised questions about how authorities conducted the investigation and a lack of movement on Smith's request.